


Aidan Minyard

by OddlyBookish



Category: All For The Game - Nora Sakavic
Genre: Aidan Minyard, Andrew and Aaron have a little brother, F/M, Kid Fic, M/M, Maybe OOC, Other, Post-Canon, sorta - Freeform, unrealistic laws
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-05
Updated: 2019-09-09
Packaged: 2019-11-12 04:24:48
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 16,105
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18003764
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OddlyBookish/pseuds/OddlyBookish
Summary: Andrew and Aaron find out they have a half brother named Aidan who's about to be put into Foster Care.He ends up in Palmetto instead.





	1. Aidan Minyard.

**Author's Note:**

> So I got tempted and this came out of it!  
> I asked around on Tumblr and people seemed to be on board so here it is, a little brother AU.  
> Firstly, this might be OOC and I am sorry, I don't always get characters down very well  
> Secondly, a lot of these laws and stuff I researched briefly before writing so they might not/ probably are not a very good representation of how these things go down. I am not a lawyer, I have no experience in foster care or adoption so this probably isn't very accurate so for the sake of storytelling ignore all my fake laws and stuff.

Officer Higgins shows up to The Foxhole Court the third week of summer practice before the cousins forth year.

Andrew tenses when he spots him, blocking Kevin's attempt at the goal with a force that sends the ball across the court and results in a loud bang that reverberated throughout the court.

Wymack knocks on the court door and brings the game to a halt after talking to the officer who stood next to him, a concerned expression on his face.

"Minyards, get your asses out here!" He shouts across the court. Nicky glances in between his cousins questionably while Andrew expression shifts from confused to angry. 

The rest of the players take a step back as Andrew drops his goalie stick and heads to the door, Aaron on his heels. Andrew glances at Neil once, a go-ahead to continue without him causing the striker to nod and bring the focus back to practice. 

Wymack leads them back to the locker room, into his office so they can talk in private. He stays with brief hesitation, not wanting to intrude yet wanting to be close by for in case things went bad.

"Pig Higgins, to what do I owe the pleasure?" Andrew asks the cop with a fake grin. Officer Higgins shifts on his feet, raising the anxiety that Aaron currently felt.

"I'm actually here for both of you." Andrew could feel Aaron tense from behind him, feels the way Aaron moves a bit more towards his left so Andrew's body shielded his own.

"We have nothing for you Higgins, Aaron's trial ended and there's nothing in California that ties us to you." Andrew states knowing his brother would stay quiet. For a split second, he thinks of Tilda's car crash, but he pushes that to the back of his mind as he stares at the cop in front of him.

"There actually is, a little boy name Aidan Minyard, his dad-your dad just died of an overdose. He's about to be seven." The tension in the room grows by tenfold, Wymack shifts on his feet while Aaron takes a step back as if he had taken an actual blow. Andrew laughs.

"Cut the crap Higgins." Andrew states darkly after a second. Higgins sighs and places a folder down on Wymack's desk, pushing it closer to the twins before he talks.

"They were going to send a Social Worker, I thought it'd be best if you heard it from me." Andrew snorts but opens the folder with no hesitation. Stopping at the picture of the young boy. He's blond, which is unsurprising, and he looks a little like the reflection Andrew remembered looking at when he was seven.

His jaw clenches and his fist curl but he stays silent as his brother sucks in a breath.

"No other family I'm guessing." Andrew mutters after a few seconds.

"None, he would have slipped under the radar if we didn't have your DNA in the system." Andrew almost wants to laugh, knowing that the DNA evidence from Drake's murder had somehow lead to him finding a little brother.

A little brother who, according to his file, had witnessed their father's death. Had been physically abused and malnourished, proved to be fearful around older adults and did not talk much.

"As his brothers you guys both have the right to fight for custody, I figured it wouldn't hurt to ask." Higgins states firmly, but it did, because looking down at the picture of a young Aidan Minyard only brought bad memories to the surface of Andrew's mind. Memories of hands wrapped tightly around his wrist and one too many pleas that were ignored. Memories of pain and tears and too many bruises that everyone ignored.

"Give me some time." Andrew ground out. The officer nods as Andrew heads to the door.

"My flight leaves tomorrow afternoon." The officer calls before the door closes behind him. Andrew unlocks his locker to grab his keys, slamming it shut and heading to the door by the time Aaron comes to his senses and rushes after his twin.

"You're not really thinking about this are you?" Aaron asks in disbelief. Andrew ignores him as he tries to light a cigarette with shaky hands.

"We can't take care of a kid Andrew!" Andrew takes a shaky drag as the twins reach the car, wanting to inhale as much nicotine as possible in order to feel steady again.

"Andrew!"

"You want to leave him to the State Aaron? Let him get passed along like a rag doll?" Andrew asks his brother venomously. Aaron flinches before running a hand through his short blonde hair and letting out a breath.

"He's better off without us." Aaron states lowly. Andrew meets his brothers' eyes and takes a long drag of his cigarette, blowing the smoke out harshly before speaking.

"He'd be better off out of the system." Andrew knew this first hand.

"Andrew-"

"I'll do it on my own if I have to." Andrew states firmly.

"Damn it, Andrew, think about this! How are we supposed to take care of a kid when we can barely function on our own? Jesus Andrew, there are days you don't even get out of bed." Andrew glares at Aaron and stomps out his cigarette.

"Well, maybe we can keep him from ending up in the same place as me right Aaron? Keep him from getting so fucked in the head that he can function better than you and I combined, because we both know I'm not the only one waking up trying to run from my demons." Aaron pales.

"How are you so on board?" He asks despite his pale appearance.

"Because if someone would have gotten me a year earlier, things would have been different." Aaron catches on to his double meaning quickly, looking sick as he stares down his twin brother though he stays silent as Andrew heads to his car.

It's a quick drive to Reddin and Bee is luckily available.

Betsy takes one look at Andrew as he storms into her office and quickly stands to make some hot cocoa. Andrew takes a seat on the couch and bounces his leg, needing to do something to keep himself occupied while Bee made them both drinks.

"What's on your mind Andrew?" Bee asks once she settles back down, placing his cup down on the coaster in front of him, handle pointed to the right like always.

"Richard Minyard passed away." He states simply, remembering the name from Aidan's file. Betsy tips her head to the side and frowns.

"Richard?"

"Sperm donor."

"We've never talked about him before Andrew." Bee reminds him, not that he needed it, his 'father' was a subject they had briefed once before Andrew decided he rather not go into it.

"We've never had too." Bee sends him a look proving she disagreed but pushes past his comment.

"Okay, how do you feel about his death?"

"I don't, he was a waste of space and apparently just as bad as Tilda. A druggie who didn't know his own limit and like to raise his fist against his kid." 

"A kid? Related to you I assume?" Andrew nods as Bee hums. They stay silent as Betsy arranges her thoughts while Andrew takes a long sip of his hot cocoa.

"Would you want to talk about the kid?"

"Aidan."

"Aidan, lovely name, means fiery after the Celtic God of the Sun."

"He'll be put into the system, Aaron and I are his only family."

"What does that make you feel?" Andrew stays silent and thinks about her question. He feels a lot of things at the thought of Aidan being placed in Foster Care, anger, annoyance, resentment, guilt. His chest hurts at the thought more than he'd like to admit.

"I don't- nothing, it makes me feel nothing."

"You refer to Neil as nothing as well, you know how I feel about you repressing your feelings Andrew." 

"I'm not."

"Aren't you?" Andrew narrows his eyes on Bee who smiles softly and takes a quick sip of her cocoa. They both stay silent until Bee speaks again, glancing at Andrew with an understanding that he hates.

"What do you plan on doing about Aidan?" She asks, moving past the previous subject knowing it was not the time for that conversation.

"He's my brother." An answer on its own.

"You plan on getting custody?" A statement.

"I assume I'll need your help." He states in lieu of an answer. She nods with a small smile as she stands up and heads over to her cabinet.

"I can make a few calls about your situation, see if any of the lawyers I know can help." Andrew nods, feeling his shoulders drop and the tension slow dissipate for the first time since he had found out about Aidan.

"Have you told Neil you plan on getting custody?" Besty asks as she returns to her chair.

"No, it wouldn't matter anyway." 

"Wouldn't it? He's your partner after all, you taking in your brother would affect his life as well." Andrew has to hold back from reminding her that Neil was nothing and instead focused his attention on the papers she slid over to him, all information sheets on custody laws in South Carolina.

"He has no say in the matter, Aidan would be my responsibility, not his." Bee looks at him with obvious disappointment but says nothing else as Andrew stands up, taking the papers with him.

"I'll send you any info I get." She tells him. Andrew nods and leaves without a goodbye, Besty knows better than to expect one from him in his current state.

Andrew drives straight towards Fox Tower, heading to the roof after a quick pit stop at his dorm to grab his laptop, grateful that Neil had tested out the WiFi connection his second year as a Fox.

Andrew dives in to research finding that in most cases he would need to prove financial stability and independence. He briefly wondered how Nicky had managed to keep his cool when he fought for custody, but the thought only made him more certain he could do the same.

Nicky was younger than he was, and at the time, less financially stable. Andrew, however, had more than one bad mark on his record, Juvie and court-mandated drugs probably wouldn't look that good for Andrew's case, but Andrew would be damned before he let Aidan be put in foster care. So he sent a message off to Higgins and his brother, telling the two of his plans before turning off his phone and pulling out his packet of cigarettes.

The roof door opens when Andrew is halfway through his second cigarette. Quiet footsteps pad across the cement floor before Neil drops down to his side, cross-legged and in his annoyingly bright team hoodie.

Neil stays silent as he plucks the cigarette from Andrew's fingers and takes a drag before placing it back in its previous spot. Andrew flicks the ashes off the end before glancing at the auburn-haired boy to his side.

"Staring." Neil mocks before turning his way, blue eyes filled with questions. Andrew ignores the urge to push back the stray curl that always falls over Neil's eyebrow and instead spills the news to Neil.

"I have another brother." Neil takes the news in stride, raising a brow before nodding once making Andrew wonder if Aaron had already spilled the beans.

"Is he also an asshole?" Neil asks seriously. Andrew sends him an unimpressed look as Neil cracks a smile.

"He's six."

"I'm guessing that's why Higgins was here?" Andrew nods and turns to glance back at the empty parking lot in front of them.

"He'll be placed in foster care unless Aaron and I fight for custody." 

"Do you plan to?" Neil asks.

"Yes." 

"Okay." Andrew turns towards Neil, unsurprised to find Neil already watching him, blue eyes steady as they meet his.

"420% Josten." Neil grins.

Neil thinks about Aidan Minyard a lot during the next few days.

He knows why Andrew wants to take him in, but a small selfish part of himself doesn't want things to change. Things were going good for Neil and Andrew, they were almost three years into their relationship, one which Andrew still didn't acknowledge much but still, they had made progress. They were well past the 'yes' and 'no's', they were able to read one another rather well, and Aaron had finally stopped being a homophobic asshole anytime he caught them sitting too close to one another. (He was still an asshole otherwise though, like right now.)

"You have to convince him not to." Aaron states. Neil raises a brow before letting out a slow breath.

"And why on earth would I do that?" He asks.

"Come on Josten, we all know a kid won't do any of us any good."

"There's no way of convincing Andrew out of this." Neil states truthfully.

"You have to try!"

"Do you not understand that all he's trying to do is save someone from ending up in his situation? He's saving your little brother from foster care and you want to stop him? Go to hell Aaron." Aaron doesn't follow him as he storms off, but he isn't the last to ask Neil to try and change Andrew's mind.

"What about Pro's?" Kevin asks that night at practice. Andrew laid on the bench outside of the court, plexiglass keeping him from hearing Kevin's question.

"A lot of people on Pro teams have children Kev." He states as he sets up the cones.

"Yeah, but this is different Neil! What will happen when they graduate? Will the kid go with Aaron or Andrew?" Neil rolls his eyes but deep down knows that Andrew would take Aidan with him, Aaron would be to busy in Med School either way.

"What about the Moriyama's? What if they see him as a nuisance in your life Neil?" Neil stops for a split second, not having thought of the possibility before swallowing the knot in his throat.

"Let's practice." He mutters ignoring Kevin's question much to his frustration.

Nicky is the only one out of the group who seems to be on board with taking in Aidan Minyard.

"We could take him to the zoo and the amusement park! I bet he'd be happy to go see a magic show, we can get cotton candy and face paintings and play those dumb carnival games." For once Andrew doesn't shut Nicky up as he rambles, lips pulling up slightly, a smile that slips away quickly before anyone but Neil can see it.

Neil still worries however and Andrew catches on to it.

"Talk." 

"Are you sure about-"

"Don't, I've heard it from everyone else Neil I ca-don't want to hear it from you." Neil stays quiet and sighs as he sits down across from Andrew.

"It's hard, not automatically thinking of everything that can go wrong." Andrew lights up a cigarette and hands it over, where it dangles carelessly in between Neil's scarred fingers.

"That's your rabbit side kicking in." Neil rolls his eyes and kicks Andrew's shin lightly earning an unamused glance from the blonde goalkeeper.

"It won't be easy." 

"Life never is."

"What about the Moriyama's?" 

"As long as you go pro and make them a lot of money they shouldn't have a problem with it." Andrew states firmly.

"It would be customary to call them." Andrew tenses as he takes a drag of his cigarette while Neil shakes off ashes from his.

"Try not to piss him off." Andrew mutters after he exhales. Neil sighs as he pulls out his phone, the number wasn't programmed into it but the little Lord had called not long before to remind Neil how good a championship trophy would look for him as captain.

Andrew says nothing as he finishes his cigarette off, grinding it out on the cold ground before taking Neil's as Neil hit the call button.

Andrew's posture stays tense as he wraps on arm around the back of Neil's neck and pulls him closer his way, wanting to be able to hear what the bastard had to say.

"Lord Ichirou." Neil greets when he hears the line connect.

"Nathaniel, to what do I owe the pleasure?" Neil closes his eyes as Andrew squeezes his neck.

"It has come to our attention that Andrew has a younger brother, half-sibling from his fathers' side, he plans on getting custody my Lord. I thought it'd only be fair that you know." The line is silent for a few seconds but it seems like an eternity before Ichirou replies.

"I assume this won't interfere with your chances of going Pro?"

"No, my Lord." Ichirou hums before sighing.

"Then the child shouldn't be a problem Nathaniel, now try not to forget our previous chat." The line goes dead after Ichirou speaks causing Neil to sigh and lean his head briefly on Andrew's shoulder before looking up at the blonde.

"Guess you'll have to try this season."

"Joy." Neil smiles as Andrew takes a drag before leaning his head back on to Andrew's shoulder.

"Still okay?" Andrew asks. Was Neil still on board?

"Always."


	2. Meetings.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aidan Minyard meets his brothers.

For the following weeks, it's meeting with lawyers and social workers. Nicky is ecstatic at the thought of getting custody of Aidan, Matt joining in on his excitement, Kevin is more reserved on the idea bringing up Pro's and Exy once before quickly shutting up at the glare that Andrew sent his way. The rest of the Foxes opinions don't really matter to Andrew.

"Your best bet is to file for guardianship and appeal for permission for out of state placement." The lawyer Leah, an old friend of Betsy, tells Andrew.

"For that you'll need a stable residence and enough income, they might also do a background check and given your history it may seem like you won't be able to get guardianship, but due to your blood relationship with Aidan and the letters of recommendation I think you have one hell of a shot." Andrew sighs and glances over at Aaron who sat by his side, chewing on his lip nervously.

Aaron hadn't been on board with the idea of taking on Aidan but Andrew was willing to do it with or without his brother's help and it seemed to push Aaron to also being part of the process, a few more nasty arguments also seemed to do the trick.

"We have a good amount of our mother's inheritance, and according to our coach we can qualify for family housing with our scholarships instead of living in fox tower." Aaron states.

"Well family housing is actually pretty good, they usually have very strict rules due to children living in the homes and if you guys had legal custody the school shouldn't have a problem with Aidan living with you guys. " Leah states.

"Wymack should have gotten it approved by now." Andrew states.

"I'll need that letter sent my way as soon as you guys have it. You'd also need to prove you can provide a stable home during winter and summer break."

"We'll be selling the house in Columbia to get one close by." Aaron tells Leah who nods with a smile.

"For now I'll move forward with your appeal for guardianship, talk to my friends in high places see if we can get it down sooner than usual. Once that's done they'll probably have someone from the state come check out the home suite, make sure it's suitable, same thing with the house once you guys get it." The thought of people looking through his things made Andrew uncomfortable but he knew it was necessary. Leah leaves soon after and the twins are left to wait.

Andrew knew it could take months to get everything approved by the state. Months in which Aidan could be passed from home to home. During those months they wouldn't be able to meet Aidan, something about not wanting Aidan to get attached to people he might not get to stay with. Andrew begrudgingly understood.

The family housing wasn't too far from Fox Tower. It was the same type of building, a large five-story with suites on every floor. There were only twenty family suites offered to the students of Palmetto State, but surprisingly less than half of them were filled. Aaron, Aidan, and Andrew would be the only people on the third floor unless anyone else applied before school started up in late August.

The suite had three separate rooms instead of two bunk rooms, a three piece bathroom, a combined living, and dining room and a small kitchenette. The laundry rooms were communal like they had been back in Fox Tower.

The suite had all the basic furniture; beds, sofas, a dining table. Andrew and Aaron just had to move their belongings to the suite. It took two trips to move everything, during which Neil and Kevin moved their things into Matt and Nicky's dorm.

Andrew tried not to think about that. Nicky would have been allowed to stay with the twins but had decided to stay behind, he wasn't too far either way. Neil and Kevin weren't family, so they weren't permitted to stay. Andrew was annoyed by that a bit more than he thought he should be.

The state luckily moved on things quickly, Andrew thinks it's due to their lawyers' insistence and the fact that Stephanie Walker had made a few calls. In a matter of three months, the length of their summer practice, Aaron and Andrew were appointed legal guardians of Aidan Minyard.

Aidan Minyard shows up only a week before the cousins forth year is set to start.

He's holding on to his social workers hand tightly, his other hand is playing with the hem of his shirt as he keeps his eyes downcast instead of looking up at his new family.  
Nicky looks close to tears the second he spots him, Kevin shifts uncomfortably at the sight of the small boy, turning to glance anywhere but at the small six-year-old.

"Aidan, these are your brothers Aaron and Andrew." The social worker Irene states as she crouches down to his level, a kind smile on her face as she points towards the twins. Andrew bitterly wonders where she was when he was in foster care, but her smooth skin and bright eyes show her to be on the younger side.

Aidan keeps his eyes on the ground, shifting his feet a few times before glancing up.

His gray eyes move around from person to person, focusing quickly on everyone in the room before landing on Andrew. Aidan frowns and looks back at Aaron before glancing in between the two with confusion.

"They're twins Aidan, like Elena and Sofia from the home." Aidan nods and finally drops his hold on Irene's hand, now using both hands to wring his shirt. He takes a hesitant step forward before he stops as if thinking things over. He seems to make up his mind after a second and stays rooted in place, looking up at the twins with slight hesitation.

"Hello." He says softly if a bit shyly. Nicky lets out a small noise from behind the three causing Andrew to roll his eyes as he kneels across from Aidan, keeping his distance from the small boy.

"I'm Andrew and that's Aaron." He tells the kid who nods in understanding as he looks in between the two. 

"He's Nicky, our cousin, you're luckily unrelated. That's Kevin, I'd do my best to avoid him and that's Neil." Aidan looks at the three men quizzingly, eyes lingering on Neil with blatant interest before glancing back at Andrew and staring at him silently.

Aidan seems to get a bit more nervous, shifting on his feet as his hands tighten on his shirt. Andrew stands up and takes a step back, giving the Aidan more space which seems to ease the blond's nerves.

"We can show you around the place Aidan?" Nicky suggests gaining the young boy's attention. Aidan nods after a few seconds of hesitance heading towards a smiling Nicky before stopping and turning towards the twins.

Aidan shifts on his feet before holding his small hand out towards the closest twin, Aaron grabs his hand with no hesitance before letting Aidan drag him behind Nicky who was smiling brightly despite his teary eyes.

"He only has a few things, his first caseworker got rid of anything he thought wouldn't be useful so I apologize for that." Irene states a look of annoyance crossing her face at the mention of Aidan's first caseworker, Andrew was on the same page.

Irene leaves shortly after they get the sole bag that contained Aidan's things, much too similar to the duffel bag Neil still had stuffed in the stupid safe. Aidan looks scared the second that she disappears. He tenses up and seems to be waiting for something, Andrew knows that Aidan is waiting for the facade to drop, from his own experience it usually happened a week into a stay.

Aidan was only in the foster care system for three months, from the time of his father's death to the time everything was approved for Andrew and Aaron to be his legal guardians. Andrew wonders how much of his tension came from his six years of living with their father and how much of it came from the three months of being a ward of the state.

"Why don't we go put your things away buddy?" Nicky asks Aidan. Aidan nods slowly, this time glancing at Andrew as he holds up a hand. Andrew takes his hand after a few seconds of measuring his own capability, taking Aidan's bag in his other arm as they head towards Aidan's room. 

Andrew had made sure Aidan's room was the one closest to his, he wanted to make sure he was close by in case the kid needed anything. Aaron's room was further away from both of them, on the other side of the bathroom.

The room was pretty bare and rather small, with a twin sized bed pushed up against the wall furthest from the door. Nicky had excitedly bought about four different bed sets, the plain blue one currently adorning the bed with a stupid fox plushie sat against the pillows.

Andrew sends a pointed look at Nicky who quickly raises his hands in defense.

"It was Neil." He states causing Andrew to roll his eyes because of course, it was the stupid junkie who thought a fox plushie would be an acceptable gift.

Nicky had also bought quite a few toys, a new set of legos which Andrew could already sense would give them hell. A box of multiple different colored tubs of Play-Doh, a few action figures and a stack of coloring books with new boxes of crayons, markers and colored pencils.

Andrew doesn't remember ever being treated the same way.

Nicky sits down with Aidan in front of the large dresser that had came with the place, folding clothes and putting it away as Aidan looked around the room, eyes lit up with curiosity.

It was clear to see that Aidan was malnourished, he was small for his size, to the point were Andrew was sure the clothes Nicky and Aaron had picked out would have to be returned for smaller sizes.

"You hungry buddy?" Nicky asks the small kid as he finishes up. Aidan shakes his head quickly, looking slightly panicked as he went back to wringing his shirt. Nicky looks at Andrew with panic evident on his face while Aidan takes a step back from the two older men, hands back on the hem of his shirt.

Andrew's mind seems to freeze, trying to figure out what to do as tears well in his younger brothers eyes. Throughout his own years in foster care, he saw multiple kids get denied food for making small messes or accidentally breaking things, he tries to remember how they were coaxed into eating after being denied food for so long.

"Hey buddy, calm down-" Aidan flinches as Nicky reaches for him, Andrew instinctively pushes Nicky away from the smaller boy who now had silent tears rolling down his cheeks, and Nicky pushes himself back further away from Aidan and Andrew.

"Guys! A little help!" Nicky shouts which does nothing to calm a crying Aidan. Aaron rushes in with Kevin in tow. Kevin curses and looks at Andrew in panic, expecting him to be some sorta help while Aaron pales as if he'd never seen a kid cry before.

Aidan lets out a cry and runs, straight into Neil causing the auburn-haired boy to stumble slightly before placing a hesitant hand on Aidan's back.

"Uh, are you okay Aidan?" Neil asks awkwardly. Aidan shakes his head no and tightens his hold on Neil's legs. Neil looks confused and nervous all at once, glancing at everyone in front of him before slowly unwinding Aidan's arms from his legs and bending down to look him in the eye.

"What's wrong?" He asks, not very softly yet not in a tone that makes the kid flinch back. Aidan seems to hesitate, eyes shifting to the room behind him before leaning closer and whispering loudly in Neil's ear.

"Daddy doesn't like it when I'm hungry." The small boy whispers poorly, Neil can spot the tension in Andrew's shoulders and knows everyone else in the room heard Aidan's confession.

"My mom didn't like it much either." Neil tells the small blonde boy, big gray eyes look up at him in surprise an confusion.

"These guys don't really mind." Aidan looks hesitant but glances back at the room before nodding, hands coming up to wipe stray tears away. Neil stands as Nicky heads their way hesitantly, a wobbly smile on his face.

"How about a sandwich buddy?" Aidan nods and Nicky smiles before gently grabbing the young boys hand and guiding him to the kitchen with Aaron and Kevin in tow.

"I hate you." Andrew states after a few seconds. Neil hums as Andrew pulls him closer, smiling when Andrew kisses him firmly.

Aidan takes a weird liking towards Neil, much to Aaron's disappointment.

"He was supposed to be on my side." Aaron mutter lowly earing him a middle finger from Neil the second that Aidan was no longer paying attention.

The twins have to wake him up early for the next week, Aidan doesn't like it much, but it's the last week of summer practice and Andrew could almost hear Ichirou's smug voice in his head reminding Neil how good a trophy would look for him.

They had bought a decent Honda, one that could fit a booster seat for Aidan, and Andrew hates it. Neil drives the Maserati more often then he does now, but the backseats were too cramped for the needed accessory, and Aidan would be much safer in a car seat.

The Foxes don't comment on Aidan, Jack tried to once before cowering away from Andrew's intense gaze. Aaron stays with him in the lounge while Andrew change before they switch out, Neil often joining Andrew while they wait for the rest of the team to change in order to start practice.

Aidan, unfortunately, also takes a liking to Exy. Kevin beams at the information, Neil looks slightly smug but wisely stays silent. Aidan watches practice with open curiosity, legs swinging on the bench as he sits far away from Wymack but close enough that Andrew can still see him clearly whenever he looked over.

They enroll him into the school closest to campus, working their own schedules around Aidan's. Aidan is one year behind most kids his age, lousy parenting at it's finest, so instead of being in first grade he starts Kindergarten.

The place him in the earliest time slot possible, he starts school only twenty minutes before practice starts. They have time to quickly shower before Neil and Andrew pick him up, Nicky's class ends when their class starts so they switch Aidan and the car keys off in the courtyard. Aaron takes over before Neil and Andrew finish off classes for the day, the afternoons are pretty quiet considering they now have a six-year-old to care for, but no one seems to mind the tough schedules and Aidan seems to relax around them after a few weeks of living with them.

Andrew opens the door on Saturday to Nicky, Matt, Kevin, and Neil. Neil was freshly showered from his morning run, he smiles brightly at Andrew as he walks past him earning him an eye roll.

Aidan sits on the floor of the living room, building random buildings with his lego blocks. Nicky beams at the small kid and sits across from him, smiling reassuringly at Aidan who had stopped momentarily as if he was waiting for Nicky to stop his fun.

"We should go out today. Show Aidan around." Matt suggests with a grin. Aidan looks up at the mention of his name before going back to the legos.

He was still rather quiet, only talking when asked questions directly or when he was coaxed into it. Besty had suggested taking him to a therapist, going as far as to recommend some. Aaron was against taking Aidan anywhere and it had been an argument between the two twins.

"There's a carnival in town!" Nicky shouts. Aidan flinches earing Nicky a pointed look from both twins.

"There's also the park." Kevin mutters.

"Boring, come on Kev, let the kid have fun." Nicky whines.

"So a carnival? Like a festival right?" Neil asks.

"See! Every kid should go to a carnival, or else they end up like Neil." Nicky states pointedly.

"Alright, let's go." Aaron states as he stands up, mind suddenly made up.

"Funny." Neil deadpans but goes ignored by Aaron who heads towards his younger brother.

"Come on Aidan, we're going to a carnival." Aaron tells Aidan, who looks up at him in confusion but does as told.

"Put on a jacket." Andrew tells Aidan who nods and heads to grab a jacket by himself.

"Yay!" Nicky yells happily. Matt smiles brightly as Neil frowns.

"I'm offended."

"You should be." Andrew mutters. Neil flicks him off with a slight smile on his face as Aaron heads to go change, cursing when he steps on a lego for the third time that week.

"Fuck! Nicky why the hell did you buy him legos." Aaron snaps as he rubs the bottom of his foot with a scowl on his face.

"Every kid needs legos." Nicky states like it's obvious.

"I didn't have legos." Neil mutters.

"Point taken." Aaron grumbles as he walks away with a grimace. Neil frowns and glances at Kevin.

"Did you have legos?" He asks the taller striker who nods.

"Megapack."

"Andrew?" 

"A few times." Andrew mutters. Neil's frown deepens before Aidan and Aaron join them once more.

They head to the carnival, breaking off into two groups to drive to the damn thing. It was pretty expensive, the dumb thing, with every little thing costing way more money than it was worth, but Andrew thought it may be worth the smile that was etched in Aidan's face for the rest of the day. He didn't say that though.

He stood by Aidan's side as he tried to win those rigged games, staying silent as everyone else cheered Aidan on. Nicky and Matt join Aidan on most rides, more than pleased to join the small boy on the kiddie rides even if they both struggled to fit. Kevin and Aaron joined them on occasion though Neil stuck with Andrew, who ate more than one of those sugary funnel cakes.

"That one." Aidan states pointing at the giant Ferris wheel as they were getting ready to leave. Matt holding on to a large stuffed bear, Nicky with two smaller stuffed animals and a flower painted on his cheek that matched the one he had coaxed both Aidan and Aaron to get. 

Andrew looks up at the Ferris wheel and is more than happy to skip until Aidan looks at him and smiles, holding out a hand expectantly. He weighs his options before sighing and taking the boy's hands, shoulder tense. He also grabs Neil's jacket and pulls him along.

Everyone else follows, Nicky excited to be able to see the whole carnival which did nothing to ease the nervousness Andrew felt in his gut.

Luckily only Aidan and Neil saw with him on the Ferris wheel, Aidan seated securely in between the two, holding on to another stupid fox plushie Neil had won him. Andrew held on to the safety bar tighter than Aidan did, but Neil didn't comment on it, started talking to both Aidan and Andrew about the last time he'd been to a carnival.

"It was nice, mom let me eat a bunch of cotton candy. I was only able to stomach it until I got home, Nathan wasn't too happy about that." Andrew glanced at Neil.

"How old?" He asks in German.

"Nine? Old enough to take my own punishment." Neil explains back in the same language. Aidan doesn't seem to mind the change of language, he continues to stare out at the carnival with a smile on his face, legs swinging as he did.

When the ride ends Andrew is the first one off. They wait until Aaron and Nicky finished, then until Matt and Kevin get off before calling it a day, heading back to the suite to watch movies with the rest of the group.

Andrew glanced at Aidan as he watched Toy Story and knew they'd made the right choice in taking on their younger brother.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I feel like this chapter fell short, sorry guys. Hopefully, the next chapter will be better but for some reason, I felt like the characterization of this chapter wasn't great. More of a filler chapter tbh, anyway let me know what you guys want to see.


	3. Setbacks.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The brothers take a step back before they move forward,

Things are good until they aren't.

Their first away game of the season messes up the steady rhythm they had going. They can't exactly leave Aidan behind, Abby joins them in every game and Besty happens to be out of town that weekend, so they take Aidan along.

Aidan sticks close to Neil, only leaving his side to join his brothers, Nicky, or Matt. Aidan still wasn't very comfortable with Kevin or Wymack.

It's a ten-hour drive, usually, Andrew sits with Neil but Aidan had taken his usual spot by the window and the young boy had dozed off rather quickly. Andrew ignores his annoyance at the situation, he and Neil rarely had time to themselves anymore, all Andrew wanted was to sit next to his friend in peace.

Neil noticed his annoyance and with little hesitation lifts the small boy on to his lap and pats the empty spot on the bench next to him. Andrew rolls his eyes but moves quickly, watching as Aidan snuggled into Neil's chest and slowly fell back asleep.

"I'm now hoping he was on Aaron's side." Neil smiles and holds out his hand, Andrew scoffs but intertwines their fingers anyway. They arrive at the stadium hours later, Neil's arm was numb because he had held Aidan the whole trip, luckily Aidan wakes up once the bus pulls to a stop. 

Aidan holds Aaron's hand as they enter the stadium, looking around warily the entire time, joining Abby as the team changes out. He sits next to Abby during most of the game, moving only when Neil or one of his brothers is off the court.

During the second half of the game, a fight breaks out, Neil at the center like always. He's slammed roughly against the plexiglass, feels the pain in his shoulder intensely as he hits the wall, and falls to the floor in a heap. Neil's head spins with dizziness, head aching as whistles are blown. The game is stopped, Andrew moves before anyone can stop him, slamming a fist into the backliner's nose with no hesitation.

Everyone's moving in seconds, people are shouting as Neil pulls himself off the floor, ignoring the dizziness and glancing towards the bench to check on Aidan. He curses when he spots the small boy, hiding by the door that leads back to the locker room while everyone else pays attention to what's happening on the court.

"Aidan, Aaron get to Aidan!" Aaron glances his way before his eyes widen and he rushes off the court. Neil focuses back on the fight, spotting Andrew easily in the mass and rushing forward, ignoring the ache in his shoulder.

"Let him go." He snaps at the ref who tries to hold Andrew back, the referee hesitantly does as told, backing away from Andrew as he does. Neil has to coax Andrew off the court, careful to keep his hands to himself, Andrew fuming the entire time.

Aidan is hunched in the corner, tears streaming down his cheeks, ignoring both Aaron and Nicky who are trying to get him to move. Matt hovering behind the two to block off the underclassman from getting any closer. Abby looks at the young boy sadly while Wymack argues with the refs. 

Andrew's attempt to reach Aidan only cause him to flinch back even more, whimpering softly as he does. Andrew's face blanks as he steps back, pulling his brother and cousin with him before glancing pointedly at Neil. Neil steps forward and bends down to the boys level.

"Aidan?" The young boy looks up and lets out a small cry before launching himself into Neil's arms with no hesitation.

Neil flinches as Aidan hits his shoulder but wraps his arms around the small boy and stands up. Aidan hides his head in Neil's neck, tightens his grip on the auburn-haired boy and whines any time anyone else tries to reach him.

"Neil, your shoulder." Abby mutters.

"It's fine, just a bruise." He states confidently. Neil meets Andrew's eyes, sees the dark look and is stuck between reaching out to help Andrew or staying with Aidan. Andrew makes the decision for him, moving back to get on to court as Abby turns to Neil.

"Let's head to the locker room, I can check your shoulder and we can get him away from all this mess." She states pointing at the few players Wymack had switched out due to bleeding noses and bruised eyes.

Neil agrees and stands up, joining her in the locker room to get checked on, and leaving Aidan with Abby as he quickly showers to try and relax his muscles. He quickly changes into his clean clothes and takes Aidan from Abby, which seems to calm him down quickly. They head back to the court after Abby checks his shoulder, Neil taking a seat next to Wymack to watch the remainder of the game with Aiden seated in between him and Abby.

The Foxes win the game, Aidan sticks to Neil's side the entire time the team showers and continues to stay by Neil's side as they load the bus. The ride back to campus is quiet, Andrew sits across from Neil on his own bench while Aidan crawls into Neil's lap and falls asleep in Neil's arms, hands grasping Neil's shirt. Neil tries to talk to Andrew once, hoping to lessen the tension in the air.

"Andrew-"

"Don't." Neil lets out a breath and stays silent the rest of the ride to campus. The rest of the bus is equally silent with Nicky sending worried looks back to his cousins and Neil whenever he was given the opportunity. 

Neil tries to hand Aidan to Aaron once they unload the bus and start parting ways. Aidan wakes up the moment he feels it happen, letting out a cry and quickly latching on to Neil's jersey in an attempt to stay close. Neil sighs but adjusts Aidan in his arms and lets the kid drops his head into Neil's shoulder.

"Just take him with you." Andrew mutters lowly causing everyone to stop.

"Andrew-" Neil starts to protest.

"He's scared of us right now Neil, it won't do any of us any good if he comes with us." Andrew states handing Neil the keys to the shitty Honda and taking the ones of the Maserati.

"But-"

"It's late Josten, he has a bag of things in your dorm anyway." Aaron cut in. Neil turns to glance at Andrew who stays silent, staring at him calmly for a few seconds before turning around and walking away, Aaron in tow.

"Guess you just got stuck babysitting." Matt jokes half-heartedly as Neil sighs and shifts Aidan in his arms. Nicky forces a smile as Neil hands over the car keys, Kevin taking the passenger seat as Matt helps buckle a dozing Aidan into the car seat.

Aidan only stirs slightly when Neil lays him down in his bunk bed, pulling off his shoes before tucking him under the covers, pleased that Aidan was dressed in clothes comfortable enough to sleep in.

Neil changes before grabbing the extra pillow and blanket from the closet and heading to the living room. Kevin raises a brow but says nothing as Neil drops on to the sofa, throwing his uninjured arm over his eyes as he failed to keep Andrew off his mind.

"Sleeping on the couch won't help your shoulder." Kevin tells him.

"I'm not making Aidan sleep on the sofa Kevin."

"Your should-"

"I've had worse Kev." Neil states as he glances at the striker who frowned before glancing at the room where Aidan slept.

"Take my bed, it'd be best if he woke up to you in the same room."

"You can barely fit on the couch Kev."

"I'll head to dad's." Kevin mumbles holding up the car keys. Neil contemplates for a second before nodding. Kevin's shoulders slump slightly before he moves to grab his wallet while he stifles a yawn.

"I'll be back in the morning." He states before leaving, the door locking a few seconds later. Neil takes his time to turn off the lights in the dorm, the light from Matt and Nicky's shared room was still on but Neil knew Matt skyped Dan after game days so he ignored it and headed to his room.

Aidan still slept soundly as Neil climbed into the bed across from him, pulling open the curtain a tiny bit so the moonlight lit up the room in case Aidan woke sometime during the night. 

Neil falls asleep a few minutes later, after checking Kevin's message which only included a picture of a glaring Wymack with the time stamp at the bottom.

He wakes up a few hours later to someone tugging on his shirt. He jumps slightly and blinks away the tiredness as he turns to glance at Aidan who was shifting on his feet staring up at Neil wide-eyed.

"What's wrong kid?"

"I'm sorry." Neil frowns and props himself up on his elbow.

"For what Aidan?"

"I was scared, Daddy says I'm not supposed to be scared." Neil sighs and runs a hand over his face, suddenly understanding why Andrew wished he could bring Nathan back from the dead for a day.

"It's normal to be scared Aidan." He explains as he sits up. He pats the spot next to him as an invitation and Aidan scrambles to pull himself up and next to Neil.

"Daddy didn't like it."

"Your dad isn't here anymore Aidan, you don't have to be sorry." Aidan looks at him with confusion evident on his face and for a second Neil worries he said something wrong but Aidan simply nods and glances down at his hands. 

Neil checks the time and lets out a sigh at the numbers on his phone that let him know it was almost seven in the morning, more sleep was out of the question at this point in time.

"Alright kid, why don't you shower while I make breakfast?" 

"Pancakes?" Neil chuckles as he stands up.

"You're definitely Andrew's brother." He comments. Aidan's brows furrow in question as Neil shakes his head and helps the small kid off the bed.

Neil grabs some of the extra clothes Nicky had bought Aidan and places it in the bathroom with a towel, making sure to take all the razors out of the tub he leaves Aidan to shower, knowing the kid was capable of doing so because Andrew had mentioned it once. Aidan knew to leave the door unlocked and to yell loudly if he needed help.

Kevin gets back as Neil's platting the first batch of pancakes. He pours a bit more batter on the pan before turning to serve himself a cup of coffee, still tired from the game the night before.

"Andrew call you yet?" Kevin asks him in French.

"No, he call you?" Neil replies in the same language, Kevin hesitates but nods as Neil places a coffee mug in front of him.

"Asked about Aidan." Kevin states simply. Neil nods as goes back to the pancakes trying not to focus on the fact that Andrew had called Kevin before he called him.

He doesn't have much time to think about it before someone's knocking on the dorm room door loudly, Kevin heads over at the same time Aidan exits the bathroom dressed in his extra clothes, a sweat suit set that fit him a little loose.

"Neil it's for you." Kevin calls. Aidan looks at him in worry but stays silent as Neil walks to the door, almost groaning at the sight of one of the Freshmen, a dealer named Derek.

"Wymack said to come to you if we needed help." Neil runs a hand over his face and turns towards the living room where Aidan shifted on his feet nervously, smiling at him in an attempt to ease the boys' nerves.

"I'll be back." He tells Aidan before turning to the taller striker. "Flip the pancake and watch him." He states before following after Derek, closing the dorm door behind him as he did.

"This better be good Derek." He mumbles as he follows the freshmen to his dorm. 

Neil freezes on the spot when Derek opens the door to his dorm. The kitchen sink was shooting water into the air, soaking everything within reach. Kyle and Bryan were trying desperately to clean up the mess with a multitude of cloth towels as Peter leaned over the sink, shirt soaked over as he tried to stop the water.

The silver faucet was discarded on the side of the sink.

"It was an accident." Derek states when Neil turns to glare at him.

"How did you guys manage?" Neil asks in disbelief.

"It was Bryan's fault!" Kyle shouts as he throws some more dry towels on to the floor.

"You're the one who broke it!" Bryan snaps back starting a shouting match in between the two. Neil pinches the bridge of his nose and curses the day he agreed to be the Co-Captain of the damn team.

"Neil!" He hears Kevin shouts from down the hall. Neil whirls around and steps into the hall at the same moment Aidan manages to slip out from Kevin's grip and rushes his way.

Neil picks up Aidan before heading towards the utility closet at the end of the hall knowing from experience that it had a water shut off switch for the entire level.

"I got it!" He hears Peter yell from his dorm after he turns the blue lever. He rolls his eyes as he closes the door and adjusts Aidan in his arms.

"Call the maintenance guy, let me know when he's here and for fuck's sake don't break anything else." He snaps at the four Freshmen who all nod while having the decency to look ashamed as he stares them down.

"What the fuck happened to the water?" Jack asks a few seconds later from down the hall as his dorm door is slammed open. Aidan's hands tighten around Neil's neck at the sound but he quiets down once Neil places a hand on his back.

"It's out until maintenance gets here."

"I was taking a shower!" Jack motions to the towel hanging around his waist.

"Tough luck." His door slams shut a few seconds later as Neil turns back to the Freshmen boys.

"Tell the floor that there's no water if they ask why maybe you can explain how you managed to break the damn sink." Neil snaps before heading back to his dorm.

He sets Aidan down once they get inside their dorm motioning towards the table, relieved to see Nicky had taken over for Kevin and that the pancakes would be edible.

"You're surprisingly scary with a kid in your arms." Nicky states with a laugh. Neil sighs and heads over to help. Matt was already at the table helping Aidan prepare his stack of pancakes, while Kevin complained about the amount of sugar being added to the pancakes.

"Let the kid live Kevin!" Nicky complained.

"He can get diabetes! Why am I the only one concerned?" Another knock on the door causes Neil to sigh, not very happy to have to deal with more underclassmen.

His shoulder slump in relief when he sees it's Andrew and Aaron, he takes a step back letting the twins in only to have Aaron step past him as Andrew motioned for him to follow.

Being on the roof again after almost two months sent a small sense of longing through Neil. The Sun was out but was rising from behind them, casting a shadow over the rooftop that made the South Carolinian heat somewhat bearable.

Andrew lit up a cigarette and took a long drag before letting it sit in between his fingers. Andrew and Neil sat in silence until the cigarette was burned down to its filter.

"Yes or No?' Andrew asks as he stubs it out on the hot cement before glancing at Neil.

"Yes."

Andrew kissed Neil with a need that hadn't been necessary in a long time, one hand curled around the back of Neil's neck while his other hand gripped on Neil's hip tightly, fingers lopping through the belt loop on Neil's jeans.

He pulls back once he feels the burn in his chest from the lack of oxygen, yet Neil continued to press kisses down his jaw and towards the base of his neck until Andrew squeezed his neck once in warning and pulled back, staring at Neil as he breathed heavily.

"438%." Neil hums as Andrew sighs.

"I hate you."

"I know." Andrew kisses Neil one last time before standing, helping the junkie up before heading down to the dorm with Neil in tow.

"Pancakes are on the stove!" Nicky shouts from the living room when they enter the dorm. Andrew walks straight to the stove top and fills a plate with pancakes topping them in enough syrup and whipped cream that Kevin started muttering about diabetes in French.

Neil topped his pancakes with some of Kevin's leftover fresh fruit and joined Andrew at the table, sitting across from Aidan who seemed to be having seconds. Aidan struggled to get the can of whipped cream to work, his tongue poking out from between his lips as his eyes scrunched up in focus. Andrew takes the can gently and shakes it before adding a heaping mountain of whipped cream to his younger brother's pancakes.

Aidan smiles brightly and says a quick thank you, causing some of the tension to leave Andrew's body, tension he'd been holding on to since Aidan flinched away from him the night before. 

They spent the rest of their day in the dorm, Neil having to run out once or twice to deal with the water situation. Aidan loosened up after some time, no longer stuck to Neil's side, yet he was quick to seek him out once Matt decided they should watch a movie.

Aidan climbed into the spot directly in between Neil and Andrew before he sat himself on Neil's lap, looking content to stay situated their the whole night if needed.

"Looks like Aidan's coming after your boy Minyard." Matt states with a wide grin.

"Shut it Boyd." Andrew snaps causing both him and Nicky to laugh.

Aidan eases back into his shell for the first few days after the game, only completely relaxing when Neil was around. Betsy said it was normal for a kid like Aidan to be wary of people and said he must have found something he liked in Neil. (Andrew ignored Aaron's comment about Aidan following in Andrew's footsteps.)

After a week everything seems to go back to normal, Aidan no longer stares at the twins with wariness, he holds out his hand to them anytime they go out and actively seeks them out as he did before.

"Am I dumb?" He asks Andrew a few days before Halloween. Andrew raises a brow and glances at Aaron who sat across from them doing his Bio homework before focusing back on Aidan.

"Why would you ask that?" He asks the kid who shrugs and goes back to doing his own homework.

"Just asking." He mutters lowly, brows scrunched up.

"Aidan, what's wrong?" Aaron asks his brother who put his pencil down and looks in between the twins.

"The kids at school say I'm dumb because I just started, said I must be stupid." Aaron sighs and runs a hand through his hair, before leaning forward in his seat.

"You're not dumb or stupid Aidan, you just had a late start, there's no problem with that." Aidan doesn't look convinced, he frowns as he glances down at his homework and picks up his pencil.

"Daddy says I am." 

"Dad was an idiot." Aaron glares at Andrew who shrugs in response as Aidan stays silent. Andrew wasn't going to sugar coat when it came to their father much like he hadn't sugar-coated things when it came to Tilda. Aaron wasn't very on board with it, but Andrew couldn't care less.

"You're not dumb Aidan, regardless of what anyone says, got it?" Aaron asks once he focused back on his younger brother who nods and continues doing his homework.

Andrew checks Aidan's homework once he's done, leaving Aaron to finish up his own homework before sending to kid to shower as it was nearing his bedtime.

Luckily Aidan isn't one to put up a fight when it comes to bedtime, he easily accepts defeat when either of the twins sends him to bed. Andrew knows that Aidan probably learned to listen from experience, he tries not to let it affect him and sometimes has to remind himself he's being responsible for sending his brother to bed early.

Once Aidan falls asleep Andrew heads out, it was Aaron's turn to stay in for the night, and picks up Neil in front of Fox Tower. Neil grins when he spots him, leans over the console and presses a kiss against his lips quickly before leaning back and putting on his seat belt.

They drive around aimlessly, both needing to get out of their respective dorms for some time. Andrew eventually parks the car in the lot of an empty park, rolling down his window an inch before lighting up a cigarette that Neil handed him.

Aaron had all but demanded Andrew get rid of them once Aidan came to live with them, Andrew wasn't happy about it but knew it was for the best so he only enjoyed them in the few moments he was away from Aidan.

"Aidan thinks he's dumb."

"Why?" Neil looks offended at the thought.

"Kids at school."

"Hm, how illegal is it to punch a kid?" Andrew smirks but stays silent, not wanting to somehow encourage Neil.

"Your cousin already bought himself a costume and candy bag, says people would willingly hand over candy if he takes Aidan's with him."

"He's not using Aidan for candy, that's my plan." Neil lets out a laugh that sparks a familiar warmth in Andrew's chest causing him to flick his cigarette off into the distance and lean closer towards his junkie.

"Yes or-"

"Yes."

Neil kisses him firmly, feverishly, an attempt to make up for any kisses they might have missed out of since the last time they were alone. It wasn't easy to get any alone time now with Aidan around, the only time they were ever alone together was on their way to class and neither Andrew or Neil were big on PDA. So they took advantage of moments like this when they were alone and away from anyone who could interrupt them.

When Yes was the only thing they needed.

Andrew drives back to his place with Neil after some time. He could have dropped him off at Fox Tower but he had an urge to keep him close so he selfishly complied. The place was dark, but light peaked out from underneath Aaron's door and Andrew could hear his twin whispering on the phone. He says nothing as Neil opens Aidan's door and pokes his head in before closing it softly behind himself as he turns to enter Andrew's room.

Neil steals some clothes and they take turns in the restroom before they get into bed, Andrew's back against the wall, Neil within his reach as they both fall asleep.

Andrew sleeps a lot better when his family is under the same roof.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I loved the beginning and end of this but the middle wasn't my fav tbh, and sorry for not being very set with uploads, I get uninspired at times.


	4. Halloween & Birthdays.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Halloween rolls around bringing dumb costumes and sugar-filled candy, with the twins birthday in tow.

Aaron tugs on the tight material of the stupid costume Nicky had forced him into as it rides up his ass.

Matt snickers from behind him earning him a glare as Kevin exits the restroom with a frown on his face.

"This seems a bit tight." He mutters lowly as he crosses his hands over his chest, the cheap fabric stretches and slides off his shoulders slightly causing the taller man to grumble and stand straight, pulling on his sleeves in an attempt to put the costume back in to place.

"This is stupid." Kevin mutters lowly, Andrew leans over and smacks him behind the head causing him to curses as he rubs his head while Matt laughs.

"I think it's fun." Matt states happily, always one to go along with everyone's ridiculous plans.

"Yeah, all you had to do was paint your body green and put on some dumb purple shorts." Aaron mutters as he tries once more to fix his costume.

"Couldn't we just wear our uniforms?" Kevin asks, Aaron silently agrees but once glance at Aidan decked out in an expensive Iron Man costume rocking on his feet in excitement keeps him silent.

"I don't understand why I'm Black Widow." Neil states from beside Andrew with a slight frown, looking uncomfortable in the costume Nicky had forced upon him. Aaron's more than amused that Neil got the worst costume of the lot.

"You're the only redhead." Nicky states as he twirls the bejeweled hammer in his hands.

"Why am I, Captain America?"

"The ass." Andrew actually snorts while Kevin's cheeks go red. Aidan seems to grow annoyed with the useless talking and is soon pulling on both Neil and Andrew's hands in an attempt to get them towards the front door.

Neil gives in easily causing Aidan to drop Andrew's hand, having caught on to the fact that Andrew was never far behind the redhead. Aidan had seemed to catch on to their relationship quicker than both Nicky or Aaron did.

They squeeze into the shitty Honda, Aidan being the only one securely sat in his car seat. Nicky drives while Neil sits in between Andrew's legs in the passenger seat and Aaron gets stuck sitting on the floor next to Kevin's legs which dig uncomfortably into his back. Luckily Abby's place isn't far, the park the car in the driveway and start to make their way around the neighboorhood knowing Aidan was eager to trick or treat.

The amount of people who 'Aww' when they see the group is astonishing, luckily it just means more candy for Aidan and the group as a whole.

"Stop scowling, you're supposed to be friendly remember Spidey?" Nicky asks cheerfully as he bumps his hips into Aaron's side causing him to stagger.

"That friendly enough for you?" Aaron asks as he lifts his middle finger, glad that Aidan seemed to be preoccupied leading the rest of the group to a heavily decorated house. Nicky gasps before dragging the mask further down Aaron's face and walking to join the rest of their group.

Aaron groans as he fixes it before rushing to catch up with his annoying cousin who's long legs had gotten him to the rest of the group in a matter of seconds.

Aidan is struggling with his candy bag rather quickly, his costume getting him much more candy than necessary. Aaron pretends not to notice when Andrew swatches bags with his younger brother, taking the heavier one and handing him his almost empty one which Aaron was starting to question.

Unsurprisingly Nicky and Matt tire out before everyone else does, the two had been eager to run after Aidan and play along with him, but despite the fact that the two were collegiate athletes, Aidan was running on pure sugar and was able to outlast them.

"Your turn." Matt states as he all but drops Aidan into Neil's arms. Neil sighs but smiles as he places Aidan down.

"Alright Iron Man, where to next?" Aidan grins and pulls Neil away as Matt and Nicky drop to sit on the concrete sidewalk, long legs spread in front of them.

"That third chocolate bar was a mistake." Nicky states as he lays back, not concerned about the amount of people trying to walk behind him who all glare and curse only to be ignored by his cousin.

"Jesus, child diabetes is a problem guys." Kevin mutters for the hundredth time that night.

"Shut up Kevin." Andrew mutters for the hundredth time as he throws a pack of skittles at his chest. Kevin fumbles to catch the small packet but doesn't fail to rip into it like he had been all night. Aaron rolls his eyes and glances over to where Aidan and Neil were waiting in line for a chance at some candy.

By the time they finish all the houses Aidan's sugar rush had crashed, he starts dragging his feet and candy bag on the way back until Andrew takes the second bag and Matt scoops the kid up, carrying the six-year-old on his back easily as they walk back to Abby's house.

"What the hell are you supposed to be?" Wymack asks Andrew when he opens the front door, glancing at his black skulled shirt with a brow raised.

"Punisher." Andrew states as he walks past their coach.

"He didn't want to be Hawkeye." Nicky grumbles as he walks in.

"I wasn't going to hold a stupid bow the whole time." Andrew mutters as he motions towards Kevin who was setting the plastic shield down by the door.

"Party pooper." Nicky mutters as Abby enters the room with a platter of sandwiches.

"You're a saint." Matt mutters in awe as he places Aidan down on the empty seat and grabs a sandwich.

Aidan's sugar crash leaves him grumpy but he still eats the sandwich Aaron places in front of him with no comment before he starts to tug at his costume in obvious discomfort.

"Alright kid, I think it's safe to take off your suit." Aaron states causing the small boy to frown.

"I don't want to." He mutters lowly before crossing his arms over his chest.

"It won't be very comfortable to sleep in." Andrew states from across the table. Aidan frowns at his brother's comment and scratches as his neck where the costume seemed to be irritating him.

"Don't care." Aidan grumbles lowly. Andrew raises a brow but stays silent as he goes back to his sandwich, ignoring the look Aaron sends his way.

"Aidan-"

"No, I wanna keep it on." Nicky and Neil stay silent but everyone else has seemed to disappear.

"Why?" Aaron asks Aidan who frowns, not expecting the question. His shoulders slump and the small kid somehow looks smaller.

"Don't want it to end," Aidan mutters as he tugs at the collar once more. Aaron ignores Nicky's sharp intake of a breath and glances at Andrew who's eyes were still on Aidan.

"Hey, we'll do it again next year alright?" Andrew states when Aidan looks up at him.

"Promise?"

"Promise." Andrew states in such a firm tone that Aidan nods and stands up, tugging on his collar once more.

"Need clothes." He tells the group.

"Come on, I think we left some here last time." Aaron tells his younger brother before guiding him to the guest room Abby always let them use. Sure enough, the bottom drawer held clothes that they had left behind when Matt and Nicky insisted they have a movie night including coach and Abby.

Aaron leaves Aidan to change by himself before heading back to the kitchen. Andrew and Neil are surprisingly still at the table, Neil's head laying on the wooden table while Andrew searched through the candy bag at his side.

Aaron walks past them, not commenting on the way Neil's head was tilted towards his brother while Andrew runs his fingers through Neil's hair after he successfully opens a lollipop and sticks it in his mouth.

They finish off the night watching old Halloween movies. Aidan dozes off halfway into Hocus Pocus, head laid against Aaron's arm. Aaron moves him over to a more comfortable position as they finish off the movie before they call it a night.

They drive back to the dorm in a similar way to the first time, this time Neil doesn't hesitate to sit directly on Andrew's lap, seeming more worn out than he had been before.

Aaron swallows down his comment and keeps his eyes on his feet the entire ride to Fox Tower.

Aaron takes the passenger seat once they drop everyone off at the dorms, the three brothers stay silent on the way to the family housing unit, with Aidan asleep in his seat the entire time.

Aaron pulls his younger brother out of the car seat once they reach the building, knowing Andrew still wasn't very comfortable touching other people and puts him to bed before showering and heading to bed himself.

The rest of the week goes by in a blur, Thursday and Friday were filled with class and practice, Saturday was rather calm as he spent most of it with Katelyn in her dorm, Sunday was spent back in the dorm suite with everyone coming over as it had become a sort of routine for the day to be spent with the three Minyard's.

Monday was the twin's birthday, and unfortunately a game night. It meant Aaron got an excuse note for the majority of his classes, but he was also stuck at the Stadium the majority of the day with Josten and Day talking strategy as the team geared up for a home game.

Aidan sat by Josten's side, brows scrunched up in concentration as he watched the two strikers go over the game plan as if he had any idea what the two of them were saying.  
Kayla, the vice-captain, and a Sophmore Dealer was going over things with the younger group of Foxes, somehow she managed to get both Jack and Sheena to listen to her which was a task both Dan and Neil had trouble with.

Aaron occupied his time doing homework across from Andrew who was reading a new book, trying to kill time before the game started, unfortunately, he had more than enough work to make up.

Taking Aidan on was a harder task than Aaron had anticipated, he sometimes wondered if things would be easier without the kid but he quickly shoved that thought to the back of his mind. Aidan was his brother, and even if Aaron wasn't on board in the beginning, he would do anything to make sure the kid stayed with him and Andrew.

It wasn't that Aidan was a tough kid to look after, in fact, he was quite well behaved. He did his homework when told, he wasn't a picky eater, he was rather clean despite only being six years old and besides the occasional temper tantrum, he was a great kid.

It was all the work that came along with taking care of Aidan that was difficult for Aaron. While Andrew somehow managed Aidan very well, Aaron struggled. He sometimes forgot to eat when left alone with Aidan, which in turn meant Aidan didn't eat. He sometimes forgot to send Aidan to bed which meant a crank sleepy six-year-old the next morning.

Aaron tried though, he really did. He bought healthier foods, he checked Aidan's minimal amount of homework, he made Andrew stop smoking anywhere around Aidan and would keep Aidan away from Andrew on his brother's bad days.

He tried, which already made him a better guardian than it seemed Richard Minyard had been.

"Alright listen up!" Wymack shouts, clapping his hands together as he enters the lounge. Aaron sees Aidan jump at the loud voice, see's his younger brother grip the edge of Josten's jersey and step closer to the redhead.

"Breckenridge is out for blood tonight, we've got the Championship every season for the last three years, they don't like that. So kick their ass and show them what Palmetto is made of." Wymack states firmly, some of the younger Foxes along with Nicky and Matt cheer loudly, Aidan shifts so he's somewhat hidden behind Josten and Day as Wymack sends everyone to change out.

Aaron waits a few seconds as the lounge clears out until he assures himself that both Andrew and Neil would stay with Aidan before changing out quickly and heading back to the lounge to takeover.

"Hey, Wymack's just loud alright? He won't hurt you." Aaron tells his brother after a few seconds of silence. Aidan looks at him for a few seconds before glancing back at his feet.

"Dad didn't talk lots." He states lowly as he swings his feet, Aaron understands quickly, their dad was quite yet he still hurt Aidan. For a few seconds Aaron wasn't sure what to say.

"Wymack won't hurt you, but if anyone ever does you come to me or Drew alright?" Aidan looks up at him before he nods just as Andrew and Neil return, Neil fixing the bright blue Captain band on his arm as he walks over.

Aidan sits up when he spots Neil, it still annoyed Aaron how much Aidan seemed to love Neil. He briefly wondered if he was the problem before also pushing that thought to the back of his mind.

"Can we go to McDonald's after the game?" Aidan asks Andrew.

"No."

"Neil?"

"Ah-"

"Of course we can, I'll need some food to make up for the lost energy." Nicky states as he appears behind Neil who jumps before sighing as Nicky throughs an arm over his shoulder and pulled him close.

"A Big Mac sounds good right now." Matt states with a happy grin.

"No, absolutely not. Do you know how many calories are in a burger?" Kevin asks with a frown.

"We'll go to McDonald's." Andrew states before standing up and heading towards the field.

"Andrew!" Kevin shouts after him as he follows along, probably to try and change his mind.

The game is tough, to the point that he stops playing the Freshmen and puts his strongest players out. Kevin and Neil finish off the entire second half with Andrew behind them at the goal. Kayla and Joey, the two best dealers are swapped along with Matt, Nicky, and Aaron.

They win by one point, he can see Josten's shoulders slump in relief from in front of him and lets himself be pulled in to a hug by his cheerful cousin.

Aaron sits by Aidan as Andrew showers first before the two switch out, Wymack congratulates the team before holding the small group back and pulling two bottles of Whiskey from his office.

"As you two are now of legal age, not that it stopped little shits before, Happy Birthday." Andrew raises a brow but takes the bottle quickly while Aaron stays put until Wymack holds out the bottle to him.

"Thanks." He states lamely as Wymack shrugs.

"Now get out of here, you assholes." The group quickly disperses, given the time they head back to Fox Tower to watch movies and eat, the twins had decided not to demonstrate any bad habits in front of Aidan.

Nicky pulls out a chocolate cake once the pizza's all gone, Matt throws a royal blue knitted sweater at Aaron's chest before throwing a black one at Andrew and hiding behind Neil and Aidan. Neil hands Aaron a small box before sitting next to Andrew, Aaron doesn't say anything as he unwraps the gift, pausing slightly when he spots a new phone.

His old phone had broken after one too many dives, breaking to a point where he could no longer use it. Aaron didn't think anyone had noticed. He glances up at the redhead who had moved to sit by the couch with Aidan in front of him, playing a game of cards Aidan had been obsessed with lately.

"I didn't know we were doing anything." Kevin states lamely before shoving some many towards Aaron. Aaron takes it with a shrug, as Nicky rolls his eyes.

"We said it like twenty times, at least." He states in annoyance.

"No, you didn't." 

"You were on your laptop, probably watching exy." Matt mutters.

"Or porn." Nicky mutters.

"Nicky..." Andrew cuts in, voice low in warning. Aaron's older cousin glances at Aidan quickly before shrugging.

"Can you do that silently?" Matt asks.

"Maybe if you like visuals that much." A pillow flies at Nicky's head before anyone can react, Andrew leans back into his seat as if he hadn't done and continues to mess with his phone, a newer model Aaron hadn't noticed until now.

Aaron turns back to Neil, who looked happy to be playing card games with Aidan as the rest of the group chatted amongst themselves.

There were times when he, begrudgingly, understands why people like Neil. He was so unapologetically him, he didn't hold back his thoughts or his words. He'd seen Neil help out the Freshmen when Kevin grew annoyed with them, he'd seen him stop to help strangers who he shouldn't care about. 

He understood why Aidan liked him too. Neil wouldn't hesitate to talk or play with him. He knew Neil helped out Aidan with school work, having seen his messy handwriting sprawled out on scratch pieces of paper by Aidan's desk after he had put his assignments away. Aaron understood why Aidan gravitated towards Neil, knew like called to like. Aaron knew Aidan would ask Neil tough question and knew that Neil answered.

Yet Aaron didn't understand how Andrew and Neil worked. He couldn't wrap his mind around the thought, not after Thanksgiving, not after Baltimore. Their shared therapy sessions with Betsy did nothing to help, in fact, it made it worse half the time. Aaron learned things about Andrew that he never wanted to know. He was only seven, had endured home after home of physical and sexual abuse, yet turned around and was with Neil. 

Neil who touched him without asking, who Aaron had seen take a seat on his lap or grab at his arm. Neil who Andrew had gotten into physical fights over. 

Aaron didn't understand it, yet he stayed quiet, swallowed his tongue and held back his words because he loved his brother, and he wanted him to be happy despite the fact that Andrew didn't seem to understand that. Despite the fact that Andrew didn't want the same thing for Aaron that Aaron wanted for Andrew.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those who got confused with the group costume;  
> Matt- Hulk  
> Kevin - Cap  
> Andrew - Punisher  
> Aidan - Iron man  
> Aaron - Spiderman  
> Nicky -Thor  
> Neil - Black Widow.  
> Hope you guys enjoyed a peek inside Aaron's mind (or what I imagine it to be) and sorry for the long wait. I hope this didn't suck. And I'm sorry if the end it kinda cut offish? I couldn't figure out how to wrap it up so you got a harsh cut, sorry.


	5. Runner.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Andrew and Neil drive to Columbia for a few hours and trouble ensues.

"This is bullshit!" Aaron snaps loudly causing Andrew to glare at him.

"Shut up, stop whining it's a simple switch." Aaron glares but Andrew doesn't falter, staring him down calmly while Aaron fumed.

"It's your turn with Aidan, I don't give a damn if you want to hang out with Josten!" Aaron yells.

"Well tough luck, you'll get two days with the cheerleader all by yourself, a whole weekend to play house." Aaron glares at his brother but Andrew turns to grab his keys and wallet, ignoring his brother.

"You're the one who wanted to take in Aidan, you're the one who thought this was a good idea, and it's your turn to stay with him!" 

"Fuck off Aaron, it's only for a few hours, I'll come to relieve you of your duty and you can go back to Kristen."

"Katelyn." Aaron grits out as if Andrew didn't know.

"Whatever." Andrew leaves before Aaron can say anything else, he can hear his brother cursing from the other side of the door but ignores his dramatic antics and heads to Fox Tower.

Neil stands by the doors, bundled in his bright team hoodie, eyes clouded, with dark bags starting to form under dulled blue eyes. He manages to pull a small smile as he heads to the car, staying silent as he slides into the passenger seat. 

A glance at the clock shows that it's only eight in the morning, enough time to drive to Columbia and back with a bit of decompressing in between.

Neil had been shaky since before the twin's birthday, Andrew had noticed instantly, but Neil went through some bad days. Days when he couldn't shake the memories and pulled back enough to steady himself. 

Once Thursday hit and Neil was nowhere near his usual self Andrew had decided enough was enough. Luckily Friday was a mandatory school staff day, meaning no classes and no dumb exy practice, unfortunately, Friday was also Andrew's day to watch Aidan. He could have easily brought his younger brother along, but Andrew wanted to keep Aidan as far away from their demons as possible.

Aaron had not taken the news lightly, but Andrew could only handle one idiot at a time.

They arrive at Columbia by nine, a combination of Andrew's driving and empty roads. They order pizza and watch movies, Neil curled up to Andrew's side silently the entire time.

Eventually, Neil dozes off leaning heavily against Andrew, it should bother him more, but the weight of the taller striker is strangely comforting. Andrew turns off the TV, pushes the pizza box away with his foot and repositions the two of them until Neil is laying half of his body on Andrews before closing his eyes.

He doesn't sleep, not quite at that level yet, but he lets his mind wander as he runs a hand through Neil's curly hairy, making a mental note to get Nicky to take the junkie to get another hair cut. Allison and Dan being gone meant no one dragged Neil off for haircuts or new clothes whenever he needed them, Andrew supposed his older cousin would have to do. He doubted Nicky would mind either way.

Andrew figures he should wake Neil once five o clock approaches, they clean up quickly before heading back to Campus. Neil looking better than he had in days.

As he approaches the campus he calls his brother, who answers with an annoyed tone, clearly not over their previous argument.

"I'm on my way, get Aidan ready, I still owe him some McDonalds." He hangs up before Aaron can say anything, parking the car just as Aaron rushes outside look frantic and scared.

"He's gone."

The world seems to stop for a few seconds at his twins' words before he grows angry.

"What?"

"Aidan, he's gone." Andrew grabs the front of Aaron's shirt and pulls him forward, glaring at him openly causing his twin to flinch.

"How?"

"I, I don't know- he was in his room, he must've left. Shit, fuck.." Aaron continues to curse as Andrew drops his hold, thoughts racing.

Aidan was gone, his little brother had slipped under all of their noses.

Andrew takes a deep breath, trying to calm his racing heart as his fist clench, short blunt fingernails digging into the soft skin of his palms. His mind goes to the darkest places, of what he endured when he was as young as Aidan. Of closed fists and scattered bruises, rumpled clothes and bloody sheets.

"Drew? Hey, calm down we'll find him." Neil states as he steps in front of him, cutting off his thought process, hand hovering over his arm.

"Neil-"

"I promise." Neil cuts him off before Andrew can say anything else, pulling out his phone and calling someone while Andrew took the time to calm himself. Moving in order to allow Neil's hand to grab his own, letting the familiar touch ground him, something that was also quite new. 

"The guys are going to start looking, you guys take the car, I'll see if I can find him on foot." Neil tells the twins.

"We'll cover more ground." He tells Andrew who nods curtly, body still tense. Andrew nods and turns towards the car, Aaron in tow.

Neil thinks back to the one time he ran from home when he was seven years old, bruised and battered from Nathan's fist and Lola's knives. He remembers running to the neighboorhood park, the one Mary would take him to whenever they were allowed to leave the house.

Neil remembers running away with aching pain coursing through his body and heading straight to the park, where the other kids always looked so happy. Where people were always smiling and he could remember his mother looking much more relaxed.

So Neil runs to the park, the one they had visited with Aidan time and time again. It takes him some time to get there, by the time he does the sun had gone down and it was getting dark. Neil tries not to think about all the bad things that happened after dark.

"Aidan!" He shouts as he reaches the middle of the park. He looks around quickly, trying to find the small blonde boy.

"Aidan!" Neil shouts as he continues to look, walking deeper into the park, swatting away a bug that got too close.

"Neil!" Neil stops at the sound of the familiar voice, whirling around towards the source.

"Aidan?!" 

"Neil!" Neil runs, following the voice until he spots him, clutching on to the trunk of the tree a good six feet off the ground, shaking maybe from the cold, maybe from fear as he sat atop a tree branch.

"I'm sorry." The boy cries, tears streaming down his cheeks.

"It's okay, you're okay Aidan." Neil assures as he glances at the tree, wondering how Aidan managed to get himself up when Neil was still struggling to figure out a way to climb it.

"I can't get down." Aidan mutters.

"It's alright, do you trust me Aidan." The little boy nods and Neil smiles.

"Okay, hold on to the branch your sitting on and hang off. When I say let go, you let go." 

"I'm scared."

"I know, that's okay remember? I'll catch you."

"Promise?"

"Promise." Neil watches as Aidan follows his instructions, and catches him before he hits the ground.

Aidan clutches on tightly, skin cold to the touch letting Neil know he'd been gone for a while before Aaron noticed. He has to coax Aidan to let him go, and sets him down in front of him, crouching to his level to look for any injuries, ignoring the occasional shiver to make sure Aidan wasn't seriously hurt.

Aidan's hands have red marks that look like road rash, red and raw at his palms and a bit down his forearm. But Neil knew a thing or two about hurting people and making it look accidental, so he asks.

"Someone hurt you?" Neil asks calmly, not wanting to scare the young boy. Aidan shakes his head quickly, lip quivering for a few seconds until he straightens up.

"Fell." He mutters instead, Neil's chest aches at the sight. Aidan had probably learned early on that crying would get him nowhere, just like Neil had. Neil wasn't sure if he was more angry or sad about that fact.

"You get hurt anywhere else Aid?" Aidan shakes his head once more, meeting Neil's eyes looking as if he was telling the truth. Neil nods and stands, pulling off his hoodie in a quick move, not caring about the cold nipping at his skin or his scars on display as he pulls the bright hoodie over Aidan's smaller frame. The hoodie swamps him completely, arms too long, hemline reaching Aidan's thighs but Aidan stops shivering, so Neil pulls the hood up and picks the kid back up.

"I'm sorry." Aidan repeats into Neil's neck as he hides his head, holding tightly on to Neil.

"It's alright." Neil assures him as he starts to walk back towards the Family Housing Tower, already dialing Andrew's number.

"Neil." Andrew sounds tense, voice tight.

"I got him, on my way to your place."

"462 Junkie." Andrew hangs up after that but Neil simply smiles as he puts his phone away and continues his walk, reassuring Aidan that he was okay and that they weren't mad.

"How'd you get up that tree?" He asks Aidan who shrugs and glances at him quickly.

"Couldn't get down." He tells the striker instead. Neil sighs and adjusts his grip as Aidan goes back to hiding his face in the crook of his neck, and continues to walk back to the tower until he spots the cousins with Matt and Kevin by the building entrance.

"Guess he is a mini Neil." Nicky jokes half-heartedly as he approaches. Aidan lifts his head at the noise, before flinching back at the sight of the five guys. Neil takes a step back to ease the small kid who had tightened his arms around his neck.

"Hey, no more running alright? One runaway is enough." Neil rolls his eyes at Andrew's words, more than used to the way Andrew spoke and is able to hear the relief in his words.

"We can go pick up McDonald's, Aidan's been wanting that happy meal toy." Aidan smiles slightly at that. Andrew nods causing Nicky to usher Kevin and Matt back to the car.

They head up to the suite in silence, Aidan still in Neil's arms, looking at his brothers with worry evident on his face. Neil places Aidan down on the couch and sits down a little bit away from him while Andrew stands across from him with Aaron at his side.

"What happened Aidan?" Andrew asks his brother calmly, who's hands quickly start to twist into the hoodie, a nervous tick no six year old should have.

"You guys don't want me." Aidan mutters. Andrew raises a brow and glances at Aaron who was staring at his younger brother in confusion.

"Why do you say that Aidan?" Aaron asks.

"Said it this morning." Aidan mumbles. The glare Andrew shoots at Aaron causes him to flinch slightly before he sighs and crouches down, smiling at his younger brother.

"It was a stupid argument Aid, of course we want you, you're our brother." The guilt is evident on his face but Aidan doesn't seem to catch it simply stares in between his brothers before glancing at Neil for assurance. Neil smiles causing Aidan to turn towards the twins.

"Promise?"

"Promise." Both twins state firmly. Aidan nods causing Aaron to sigh and stand up, holding a hand out to Aidan.

"Come on, let's clean you up."Aidan nods and stands up, seemingly forgetting anything about his brothers not supposedly wanting him.

"He said he fell, didn't see any other injury on him." Neil tells Andrew as he stands.

"Aaron's an idiot." He supplies causing Neil to smirk.

"Yeah, well I could've told you that." He jokes. He doesn't tell Andrew that Aidan was most likely out there for a while, though he's sure Andrew suspects that and knows it's a matter of time until he acts on it.

Aidan returns with Aaron in tow twenty minutes later, freshly showered and with bandages covering his arms. He, of course, heads straight towards Neil pulling himself up to sit next to the Striker.

The guys arrive soon after with bags of McDonald's in hand, Kevin looking unamused as he sets down a drink carrier.

"It's way too late for this." He tells the group. Nicky throws a wad of paper towels his way as he starts to sort the food, handing Aidan the red happy meal box with a smile.

No one mentions Aidan's disappearing act as they eat while watching Spongebob episodes that sent Aidan into fits of giggles every few minutes.

Kevin insists they practice that night, Neil happily agrees causing Matt to join in. Neil glances at Andrew once, earning a shake of the head and nods before leaving with the two.

Nicky and the twins are left with Aidan who frowned once he noticed Neil would be leaving. He sulks for a bit until Nicky distracts him with colorful legos, then proceeds to race against Nicky to build the tallest tower. 

Andrew reads on the couch, glancing over every once in a while to watch their progress and make sure the two are okay. Aaron emerges from his room dressed in fancier clothing, he hesitates when he glances at the three, before stating he was leaving for the night and walking out the door.

"Why doesn't Katelyn come over here?" Aidan asks a few moments later, Andrew glances at his brother and raises a brow, noticing the way Nicky quickly stops what he was doing.

"Neil comes over a lot." Aidan supplies with a shrug, focusing on the legos he was building.

"It's different." Andrew states, watching as his brothers brows furrow.

"How?" He asks, pure child curiosity at bay.

"Neil's a friend." Andrew tells Aidan earning a snort from Nicky. He glares at his cousin who quickly clears his throat and continues to build his lego tower.

"Katelyn is Aaron's friend." Nicky laughs at that, shutting up once he receives a warning look from Andrew.

"I like Katelyn, she buys me chocolate and smells nice." Both things were news for Andrew, as he didn't go around sniffing the Cheerleader and had no clue Katelyn ever hung out around Aaron when Aidan was around.

"Well then I guess there's no problem with her coming over." Andrew mutters before returning to his book.

Nicky and Aidan talk as they build their towers, Andrew tunes in anytime Aidan mentions his school, wanting to make sure no one was messing with Aidan anymore. One phone call to the school was all he was willing to make.

Nicky gets picked up sometime later, but Neil comes back, freshly showered and trying to stifle a yawn. Aidan had started to yawn a few minutes earlier but the sight of the redhead gives him new vigor.

"Can we watch a movie?" Aidan asks with a big smile, eyes focused on Neil instead of Andrew. Andrew sends Neil a look which he quickly translates.

"Tomorrow Aid." Neil tells Aidan who frowns instantly.

"But why?" He asks with a pout before yawning, quickly trying to cover it up.

"Because we're all tired." Aidan frowns but doesn't continue to protest, simply sighs dramatically and kicks his feet as he agrees.

"Off to bed." Andrew tells his brother who huffs but does as told, bedroom door slamming shut harsher than usual.

Neil helps Andrew clean up before they head to Andrew's room, door closed and locked behind the two.

Neil switches out his fitted shirt for a baggie sweatshirt that belonged to Andrew before dropping face-first onto Andrew's bed. Andrew changes quickly, ignoring the feel of Neil's eyes on him as he does. It doesn't bother him anymore, showing skin around Neil was easy, almost too easy.

He lays down in bed and meets Neil's eyes rolling his eyes at Neil's cheeky grin and turning his face away gently. Neil laughs and rolls over, pretty blue eyes meeting his before he raises a brow. Andrew nods and Neil leans forward, pressing his lips against Andrews as he shifts forward.

Andrew's hands move forward grasping the front of Neil's, his, hoodie and pulling the striker forward. He can feel Neil smile against his lips and quickly bites at his bottom lip earning him a groan that sends chills down his spine.

They eventually fall asleep, Neil's shirtless back against Andrew's chest, Andrew's hand draped heavily over the younger mans waist. The days' events are pushed back no longer of much relevance, Neil was doing better, Aidan was okay and Aaron was happy with his cheerleader.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once again, I'm sorry if this is super out of character and I'm sorry for not be more consistent with uploads. College classes just started back up and I'm juggling work, school, writing, and life in general. Let me know if you guys like this chapter and please let me know what else you'd like to see. And I'm sorry for that ending, not my best work.

**Author's Note:**

> Let me know if you see any mistakes, I should have the next part soon and Aidan will get introduced in Chapter 2. Let me know if there's anything you'd like to see in this story, right now I have no major plans for this and I'm writing as I go so comment what you'd like to see.  
> This story will probably have time skips later on, it all depends on how the first few chapters go.


End file.
